At a press conference in Miami Beach, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced he would deploy 140 state troopers and 24 Quick Response FHP Troopers to popular spring break destinations, such as Miami Beach, Daytona Beach, and Panama City Beach.
“Florida may be popular for spring break, but it is inhospitable to criminal activity,” said DeSantis. “Florida does not tolerate lawlessness and chaos. I am directing state law enforcement agencies to provide additional personnel and assets to local entities to ensure that they have the resources they need to keep the peace over spring break.”
The governor said he was responding to requests for increased enforcement presence from 17 law enforcement agencies.
FDLE Commissioner Mark Glass said that dozens of his members will be working during the spring break season to support our local agencies. He said, “From mobilizing our resources quickly to conducting investigations to providing analytical research, we won’t let Florida fall victim to the chaos that other states have seen.”
In Miami Beach, the enforcement mechanisms will include:
- Curfews, security searches, bag checks, and early beach closures.
- Uniformed officers patrolling in vehicles, ATVs, bicycles, and on foot.
- Barricades, DUI checkpoints, and parking and lane closures.
Feature photo credit: Photo by Olha Tatdot on Unsplash
CORRECTION: I misread and thought it was referring to State Guard. My bad, it’s all real police mentioned in the mix.
It still wouldn’t surprise me if they start showing up in the mix for “crowd control” at some point. I was VERY alarmed to hear the head of our neighborhood watch announce last night that he just completed 3 weeks’ training with the State Guard, that he was one of the people selected to head off to Texas, and that they are looking for more good recruits. I asked him point blank if they are being encouraged to recruit through local neighborhood groups, and he responded with a firm no. My neighbor’s individual thoughts aside, don’t be surprised to see troops in DeSantis’s personal army start to fan out among local community groups to seek out the willing.
ps. I was VERY alarmed to hear the head of our neighborhood watch announce last night that he just completed 3 weeks’ training with the State Guard, that he was one of the people selected to head off to Texas, and that they are looking for more good recruits.
I asked him point blank if they are being encouraged to recruit through local neighborhood groups, and he responded with a firm no. My neighbor’s individual thoughts aside, don’t be surprised to see troops in DeSantis’s personal army start to fan out among local community groups to seek out the willing, regardless of the able.
And there it is–the jump the shark moment where a would-be dictator starts mixing his hoard of mostly ill-trained whack jobs into explosive situations as a show of force and intimidation, with escalation through their presence inevitable. Of course, that’s what he wants. The more chaos he can sew, the more he can represent himself as the only Daddy powerful enough to keep it in check.
In other words, fascism.
There is no bottom to how bad this State Guard scenario could get–for the actual police, the National Guard, real military, residents, and visitors alike.
The only thing for certain is this man’s dangerous power hunger–an insatiable need he shares with his wife–will yield results at whatever depth the legislature and the voters allow it to sink.